Bag settling device



Dec. 9,1958 E. M. LAU 2,863,475

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BAG SETTLING DEVICE Dec. 9, 1958 Filed May 14, 1954 Dec. 9, 1958 E. M. LAU 2,863,475

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BAG SETTLING DEVICE 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 14, 1954 2,863,475 Patented Dec. 9, 1958 line BAG SETTLING DEVICE Erwin M. Lau, Bolton, 111., assignor to Black Products Co., Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application May 14, 1954,Serial No. 429,367

3 Claims. (Cl..141-77) This invention relates to a bag: settling device.

In filling bags with powdery or flaky material, it is often desirable to agitate the bag or contents during the filling operation so as to settle the same. it has been proposed to accomplish this by causing the bag to rest on a vibrating platformduring the filling operation. However, this is not entirely satisfactory for the reason that in some types of bag filling machines, the bag is suspended in such a manner that the increase in weight of the bag and contents can be utilized to automatically shut off the filling mechanism. of the weight of the bag and contents is taken up by the vibrating mechanism, such automatic cut off mechanism cannot be readily designed to operate with the required degree of accuracy.

It is an object of this invention to provide a bag settling device which can be used in conjunction with a bag filling machine of the automatic cut off type above outlined.

In this connection, a bag settling device has been provided which slaps the side of the bag.

A further object of this invention is :to provide a bag settling machine of the slapping type which will be eifective during all stages of the filling operation in the sense that the slapping members will engage the opposite sides of the bag irrespective of the thickness of the bag. In other words, at the beginning of the filling operation, when the bag is almost empty, the bag hangs loosely and is narrow. Toward the conclusion of the filling opera tion, the contents of the bag have caused it to greatly increase in thickness. The present invention is designed to automatically accommodate this very substantial increase in thickness.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a bag settling device in which the arms are automatically retracted, or opened up,-at the conclusion of the settling operation, to the engl that the bag may be freely withdrawn from the suspending means at the conclusion of the filling operation.

The present invention is shown in conjunction with a bag filling machine of the type wherein the bag is sus pended from the filling spout, an example of such machine being shown in copending application .of Erwin M. Lau, Serial No. 335,221, filed February 5, 1953, now Patent No. 2,733,040 issued Ian. 31, 1956. However, it will beunderstood that the present invention is equally well adapted for use with other types of bag filling machines.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.

With reference now to the drawings in which like reference numerals designate likeparts:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a preferred embodiment of this invention, the bag settling device "being shown in conjunction with a bag filling machine;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1;

If the whole or a part A a sleeve the drive mechanism mounted thereon;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the retracting mechanism;

Fig. 6 is an end view taken along line 66 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 7 is a detailed vertical section taken along line 7-7 of Pig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a bottom view similar to Fig. 4, but showing the parts in a changed position;

Fig. 9 is a vertical section taken along line 9-9 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a detailed view drive links;

Fig. 11 is a diagrammatic view showing the whipping action;

Figs. 12 and 13 are plan and elevational views, respectively, of a modified arm construction; and

Fig. 14is a diagrammatic representation of a latching means.

With reference now to Figs. 1 and 2, the reference numeral 15 designates generally the bag filling machine, and the reference numeral 16 designates generally the settling device which is disposed at the front of the bag filling machine and below the filling spout. The bag filling machine comprises a frame 17 having a hood 18 which encloses certain parts of the bag filling machine mechanism. The filling spout 19 projects forwardly from the hood, as shown in Fig. 2, so that a bag 24 can be suspended therefrom during the filling operation.

The settling device includes drive mechanism 20, shown in Fig. 3, which is enclosed in a housing 21 and which is mounted on the under side of the cover plate 22 of the housing. The housing may be provided with lugs 23 to the end that the settling device 16 may be suitably bolted to a platform or the floor.

The settling device also includes two vertical shafts 25 which extend upwardly through the cover plate 22 and which are provided with horizontally extending arms 26. The arms 26 are resilient and are provided at their outer ends with weights 2'7.

In operation, the shafts 25' are caused to oscillate through an amplitude of, say 10, thus causing oscillation of the arms 2-6. However, due to the resilience of the arms, and due to the presence of the weights 27, the outer ends of the arms have a substantially greater amplitude of oscillation, say of the order of 30. In other words, the present arrangement provides a whipping action by means of which the arms overthrow beyond what may be termed the limiting drive position, this being the position of the outer ends of the arms when the arms are in unflexed position. The inner and outer limiting drive positions, of course, correspond to the amplitude of the oscillation of shafts 25, and are shown in solid lines in Fig. 11. The extent of overthrow is indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 11.

Fig. 11 thus illustrates the manner in which the slapping action of the arms is not affected by the condition or thickness of the bag 24-. The distance between the arms, in their inner limited driven positions is greater than the maximum thickness of the bag, that is, the thickness of the bag when completely filled. Thus, the increase in the thickness of the bag will not impede the free oscilla tion of the shafts 25, nor will it impose undue loads on the driving mechanism. The increasing thickness of the bag merely limits the extent of overthrow.

The driving mechanism, as shown in Figs. 3-10, includes a motor 319 which is suitably bolted to the underside of the cover plate 22, and which includes an output shaft 31 which is connected to a drive shaft 32 through showing the eccentric and 'ing movement.

As shown in Fig. 9, grooved guide blocks 34 are accured to the under surface of the cover plate 22 by means of screws 35. A plate 36 is received within the grooves of the guide blocks 34, and is supported thereby for slid- A stud shaft 37 having ahead 32%, and a threaded end 39, is mounted in the sliding plate 36 by -means of a nut 46, also shown in Fig. 9.

A bevel gear 41, which is concentric with the shaft 3'7, but which is provided with an eccentric ab 42, is mounted on the stub shaft 37, a suitable bushing 43 being provided.

A thrust bearing 44 is disposed between the head 32% the bevel gear 41 so that the nut 40 can be tightened up without materially increasing the frictional load. The

both of the shafts 25.

As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, a block 46 is suitably secured to the under surface of the sliding plate 36, and a bearing 47, also shown in Fig. 6, is secured to the block 46. The drive shaft 32 is journaled in the bearing 4-7.

Means are provided to confine the drive shaft against axial displacement with respect to the bearing 47 and the sliding plate 36. This means comprises a hub member 48 disposed at one side of the bearing 47, and a spacer collar. t disposed at the other side. The hub member 48 is welded to the drive shaft 32 as indicated by the reference numeral 49. The spacer collar 5% is suitably secured to the drive shaft 32 by a drive fit, or by Welding. Thus, the bearing 47 is confined between the members 48 and 55 A bevel pinion 51 is suitably mounted on and keyed to the end of the drive shaft 32, as shown in Fig. 5.

Means are provided to cause the drive shaft 32 to telescope into the sleeve 33, and thus to draw the sliding plate 36 to the right, as the parts are viewed in Fig. 5. This means comprises a governor designated generally by the reference numeral 55. As shown in Figs. 5 and 7, the governor includes a front yoke 56, a rear yoke 57, and two sets of links 58 and 59. The yokes 56 and 57 are generally similar, except that the central opening in the front yoke 56 is smaller than the central opening in the rear yoke 55. This is for the reason that the drive shaft 32 is received within the central opening of the front yoke 56, whereas the sleeve 33, which is of greater diam- A splined connection is provided between the drive shaft i :32 and the sleeve 33 by means of a key 62, as shown in Fig. 5, the sleeve being provided with a cooperating keyway. As shown in Fig. 7, set screws 63 pass through the sleeve 33 and engage the output shaft 31 of the motor to provide a suitable driving connection between the output shaft and the sleeve. A coil spring 64 surrounds elements 3233, and bears against suitable washers, to urge the drive shaft 32 and the sliding plate 36 to the left, as

viewed in Fig. 5.

The extended position of the spring 64, as shown in Figs. 35 corresponds to the retracted position of the arm shown in Fig. 1, and this is the normal position of the parts when the motor is de-energized. When the motor is energized, however, centrifugal force throws the links '5859 outwardly and causes the front yoke 56 to move 'rearwardly against the bias of the spring 64, and this also causes the drive shaft 32 and the sliding plate 36 to move 'rearwardly into the operative position shown in Fig. 8.

This motion does not destroy the relative position of the pinion 51 and the bevel gear 41, since the bevel gear is mounted on the plate 36, and thus it moves with the bevel :pinion 51.

The rear yoke 57 is preferably welded to the sleeve 33 as indicated by the reference numeral 65; however, the use of set screws 63 permits disassembly of the parts,

after the pins 61 have been removed. The latter may be weighted to whatever extent necessary (61a) to secure the desired extent of movement, or the spring 64 may be replaced by one having the desired tension.

The driving connection between the bevel gear 41 and the shafts 25 will now be described. Since both shafts 25 and the parts associated with each are substantially identical, the same reference numeral will be used to identify the corresponding parts associated with each shaft.

As shown in Fig. 3, bosses 70 are formed on the underside of the cover plate 22, and these bosses, being of substantial length serve as bearings for the shafts 25. The lower end of each shaft is provided with a collar 71 which is suitably secured to the shaft, as by a pin. Disposed between the collar 71 and the boss 70, is a yoke arm 72, the yoke end of which surrounds the shaft 25, and can be caused to grip the same by tightening up on the screws 73. It will be observed that one of the bosses '70 is longer than the other so that the yoke arms 72 may be offset, one above the other, as shown in Fig. 6.

Links 74, shown in Figs. 6 and 10, are connected to the outer ends of the yoke arms 72 by means of suitable pins 75. The rear end of each link is in the form of a bearing which surrounds the eccentric hub 42 of the bevel gear 41, as shown in Fig. 10. Thus, rotation of the gear 41 will cause the links 74 to reciprocate back and forth, thus imparting oscillatory movement to the yoke arms 72, the shafts 25, and the slapper arms 26. As soon as the motor is de-energized, the forward movement of the sliding plate 36 causes the links 74 to push the yoke arms 72 forward into the Fig. 4 position, thus causing retraction of the slapper arms 26.

The shafts 25 are provided with suitable collars 76 which may be secured thereto by suitable pins or set screws and which bear against the top surface of the cover plate 22 and serve as thrust bearings to support the weight of the shafts 25. The upper ends of the shafts may be braced by a suitable cross member 77. The cross member may be held in place against the upper ends of the shafts 25 by screws 73,- for instance, and of course a loose fit is provided so as not to impede the oscillatory movement of the shafts 25.

A portion of the cover plate 22 is broken away in Fig. 8 to show the manner in which the arms 26 may be secured to the shaft 25. As shown in Fig. 8, an elongate connecting member 79 is provided, one end of which comprises a yoke 80, and the other end of which comprises a tongue 81 to which the arm 26 may be suitably riveted. The yoke surrounds the shaft 25, and may be caused to securely grip the same by tightening up on the screw 83.

To summarize the operation, which has been described in detail in connection with the description of the various parts and sub-assemblies, when the motor 30 is deenergized, the arms 26 are in their retracted position as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, and the sliding plate 36 is in its forward position, as shown in Figs. 3, 4, and 5. When the motor is energized, the rotation of the bevel gear 41 will cause oscillation of the shafts 25 and arms 26 while in their retracted position, but as the motor gets up to speed, the governor 55 will cause the plate 36 to be displaced rearwardly, thus causing the arms 26 to move into their operative position, shown in Fig. 8. Similarly, when the motor i de-energized, the spring 64 will cause the arms 26 to be retracted so that the bag 24 may be removed from the spout 19 without interference from the arms 26.

In other words, the eccentric hub 42, which is a part of the bevel gear 41, comprises a common actuating member for oscillating both of the shafts 25. This common actuating member also serves to impart an additional rotation to the shafts 25 so that the arms may be retracted to a position beyond the outer limiting drive position, to permit withdrawal of the bag. To this end,

the common actuating member forms a part of a displaceable assembly which'includes the slide plate 36. The driving connection between the hub 42 and the shafts 25 is such that not only 'the oscillating movement will be imparted to the shafts, but also the additionalrot'ation which results in retraction of the arms.

Although an oscillaiton of only comparatively small magnitude will be imparted to the shafts "25, nevertheless, by virtue of the weights27 and the resilience offthearms 26, the arms will oscillate through a substantially greater arc, as diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 11, the amplitude of the are being determined by the thickness of the bag. Thus, the bag contents will be settled by a vigor- 011s and rapid slapping action which will not be impaired by the gradually increasing thickness of the bag.

A modified arm construction is shown in Figs. 12 and 13. In this construction, each arm 26 is confined between curved side plates 90 and 91. These plates are of cold rolled steel, A3 inch stock, and hence are substantially non-flexible, as compared with the arm 26. Thus, by limiting the flexure of the arm 26, they serve to distribute the fiexural stress, and hence lengthen the life of the arm 26. The outer plate 90 is preferably longer than the inner plate 91, thus limiting the overthrow beyond the outer limiting drive position.

Leaves $2 and 93 are disposed between each side plate and the arm 26. These leaves are of spring stock, about one-half the thickness of the arm 26. They serve as buffers, and add additional stiffness to the system beyond the initial few degrees of free flexure of the arm 26, thus further improving arm life.

The elements 26 and 90 to 93 are all secured to tongue 81 of the connecting member 79 by suitable means, such as the screws 82 which afford a detachable connection.

It is contemplated that means, such as the spout 19, be provided to hold the bag in a substantially centered position between the two sets of slapper arms; however, it will be apparent that the present invention is of utility in connection with types of bag filling machines other than that shown herein. For instance, the bag may equally well rest on a platform while it is being slapped. The arrangement shown is capable of a wide variety of applications, particularly since the arms 26 project beyond the end of the housing 21, with the result that the bag may be supported either at its top or at its bottom. Furthermore, no mechanical connection is required between the bag and the settling device, or between the bag filling machine and the settling device, thus contributing to the universality of application.

However, when the present invention is used with a bag filling machine which has an automati cut off, actuated by the tripping of a balance beam, of the type shown in the aforesaid copending application, I have found it desirable to provide latching means to maintain the beam in its untripped position during operation of the bag settling device. Thus, agitation of the bag will not cause the beam to be tripped prior to the proper time.

Fig. 14 illustrates such a latching means, as applied to the beam of the weighing machine shown in the aforesaid copending application.

In Fig. 14, the reference numeral 100 designates a structural member of the bag filling machine, and the reference numeral 101 designates generally the rear portion of the balance beam which is disposed beneath the structural member 100. The latching mechanism is designated generally by the reference numeral 102 and includes a shaft 103 which is spring biased rearwardly, or to the right, as shown in Fig. 14. A disc 104 is carried at the end of shaft 103. A block 105 is mounted on the balance beam 101 in a position in registry with the operated position of the disk 104. Suitable electromagnetic means, such as a solenoid 106, are provided to draw the shaft 103 and disk 104 forwardly, against the magnetic means is desirably connected into t'he-c'ircuit of the motor 30, so that whenever themotor' SO-is energized, the solenoid will also be energized to operate the latch.

Suitable means, not shown, may be provided to automatically open the motor circuit a few=secondsbefore the bag 24 is filled, thus alsode-energizing the solenoid 106 and causing the same to move to its unoperated position, which corresponds to the dotted line position of the disk, shown in Fig. 14.

Thus, as soon as the motor is de-energized, the arms 26 will be retracted, and the balance beam 101 will be unlatched to the end that the filling mechanism will be automatically shut off as soon as the bag and contents reach the proper weight.

In order to avoid the effect of any transient vibratory movements of the bag immediately after retraction of the arms 26, suitable dash pot means 107 may be associated with the shaft 103 to delay its return until such transient movements have died down.

The parts are suitably mounted on a plate 108, secured to structural member 100, the plate 108 carrying a bushing 109 for the shaft 103.

The spout 19, from which the bag 24 is suspended, is associated with the balance beam 101 as shown in the aforesaid copending application, Serial No. 335,221, to which reference is hereby made. The subject matter of said application, insofar as consistent with the present disclosure is incorporated herein by reference.

It will be observed that the oscillating mechanism is arranged so as to oscillate the two shafts 25 in opposite directions and in unison with each other so that the torque reaction of one set of arms will offset the torque reaction of the other set. This contributes materially to the portable nature of the device, as does the resilience of the arms. For instance, if the slapper arms are oscillated in the same direction, the inertia of the arms and the torque reaction, would cause the base to move from side to side in a manner which could be overcome only by a permanent and very secure anchoring means. Furthermore, the resilience of the arms reduces materially any shock to the mechanism which might otherwise arise due to the rapid oscillation.

Although only a preferred embodiment of this invention is shown and described herein it will be understood that various modifications and changes may be made in the construction shown without departing from the spirit of the invention as pointed out in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A bag settling device comprising a pair of laterally spaced vertical shafts, a horizontally extending slapper arm secured to each shaft, means to oscillate said arms, and means to cause said arms to be retracted when said arm oscillating means is inoperative so that a bag disposed between said arms may be withdrawn, said arm oscillating means comprising a motor, an eccentric driven by said motor, a yoke arm secured to each shaft, a link connecting each yoke arm and eccentric, and means for mounting said eccentric for displacement toward and away from said shafts, and said arm retracting means including a governor driven by said motor and connected to said eccentric for determining the displaced position thereof.

2. A bag settling device comprising a pair of laterally spaced vertical shafts, a slapper arm secured to each shaft, a motor, a common actuating member driven by said motor, a yoke arm secured to each shaft, a link connecting each yoke arm and said common actuating member whereby operation of said motor will oscillate said slapper arms, displaceable mounting means for said common actuating member, and means for displacing said mounting means from an operative position in which said arms, upon oscillation, will strike the sides of a bag disposed between them, and an inoperative position in which said arms will be retracted so that said bag may be Withdrawn.

3. A bag settling device comprising a pair of laterally spaced vertical shafts, a plurality of vertically spaced References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Jordan June 18, 1918 Kerstein Feb, 3, 1920 Rees June 21, 1932 Litchfield Aug. 22, 1932 Evans Dec. 7, 1943 Foote Aug. 27, 1946 Anderson Apr. 22, 1947 Rand Feb. 28, 1950 

